Chronicles of the Nine: A Craving for Revenge
by jberardo113
Summary: The year is 2021, and the Nine, the next generation in the Warren Line of Witches, is only getting used to the fight against evil. They're all still recovering from their biggest battle, which took place a year ago. Now their opponent may have returned. Watch as the Nine deal with problems, both mortal and magical, and try to live a double life. Rated T for safety.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: For this story, I've decided to ignore a couple (non major) canon aspects of the story.

**Wyatt's Status as Twice-Blessed was not removed**. It was in the main storyline, but I've decided to ignore it, due to the fact that it would not make sense for Wyatt to have half the powers he does without the title.

**Mortals cannot control powers**. Instead, it's just very difficult, and they need stricter mentoring than most. Also, they must have their powers willingly bestowed by a magical being.

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN CHARMED.**

Kavaran stood at the opening of the cave, overlooking the horrible, barren Demonic Wasteland and the devastation that had been wrought by the equally terrifying Beast and found that he could not care less. All he ever felt anymore was bitterness eating away at his being, his sanity. He barely noticed where he was anymore. That was the problem with isolation, you had time to reflect. Kavaran did not want to reflect. The only things he had to reflect on were mistakes, the kind that get you killed.

Hesitation was the only mistake he had ever made, and was indeed a most critical error. He had hesitated to kill seven-year-old Pamela Halliwell, which resulted in the Nine being able to vanquish him. He had hesitated when his powers had fallen not three feet away, and they had been devoured by that horrible beast. He hesitated every time a demon was vanquished by a witch, somewhere on Earth, and its powers fell to the ground, waiting to be obtained, and that was why he was still in this hell.

Kavaran was a demon, and had once had demonic powers. Once he had been vanquished, however, the powers had separated from him. They were gone now, devoured, consumed by the giant worm that was the Beast.

Most demons, Kavaran had noticed, were destroyed coming into the atmosphere, leaving only their powers, which fell and were devoured, like his. It didn't take him long to find out why he hadn't burned up. He still clung to the desire for revenge, and that desire had held his body together as he fell to the ground.

His plan was formulated, now all he had left to do was wait for the ideal opportunity. At least two evil forces must be vanquished at the same time, and their powers would both have to fall reasonably close to his location. Although he hated the idea of losing potential power, he knew he would have to take the lesser of the two. The Beast always went for the most powerful first. The real world was only a Shimmer, a Blink, or a Glisten away. All Kavaran had to do was obtain the power.

Step two was to exact revenge by any means necessary. The Nine would pay for what they had done to him! He would not continue to be disgraced this way for long!

The Nine! What a distasteful thought! The Twice-Blessed Child, Wyatt, was the oldest. His vast array of powers included Projection, the ability to manipulate reality. It was a very fearful thought for lesser demons, though it wasn't powerful enough to affect any of the more powerful. Chris, Wyatt's younger brother, could do amazing things with telekinesis. He also had an ability to make up a spell on the spot. Melinda, the youngest of those three, had mastered the power of Deflection while battling Kavaran. It had been a key factor in his defeat. The twins, Tamora and Kat, specialized in molecular powers. Tamora could speed them up and Kat could slow them down. Prudence Johanna had a whole host of things to Call to her hand, most being weapons. And Henry shouldn't even have had powers! He wouldn't have if not for his witch mother and the Avatars. He could conjure matter out of nothing. Parker was the one he had to defeat, if he ever wanted to make it to his goal. She could see the future. Pamela was only seven when Kavaran had confronted the Nine, but her ability to make others levitate had severely limited Kavaran's powers. They would all die, slowly and painfully. He would kill the Twice-Blessed last, so he could watch his family, which he was very protective of, die around him and know that he had failed.

Kavaran himself looked horrible. He had spent almost a year in this place, constantly running and never sleeping. He no longer needed sleep. Sleep was for the weak, anyway. Only demon hybrids needed sleep, not pure ones like he. The endless running was what got to him. He had never ran from an opponent before, not even after his vanquish was certain. That had been before he was reduced to a powerless ruin of his former self, however. He was above nothing. He would accomplish anything for survival, and even more for new powers.

Suddenly, Kavaran heard multiple screams. His advanced and trained senses could make out three voices. _Three!_ What luck! There was a very high chance of him accomplishing what he came here for now! He dashed into the opening, and prepared for a race. The Beast would be upon them soon as well, trying to devour the powers that Kavaran had waited so long for.

The first demon that Kavaran saw was Gar, a member of the Reconstituted Brotherhood of the Thorn and a demon Kavaran knew personally. He was very powerful, and Kavaran knew that he would certainly be unable to gain those powers. That was fine, though. He had prepared for months to pass up something like this. He wore regular clothing, meaning he must have been undercover in the mortal world during his vanquish.

The second was a less powerful demon that Kavaran had never met. He could sense a respectable level of power, though nothing close to his former glory or Gar's power. The demon appeared to be female, but Kavaran couldn't tell from this distance. Her attire included a black demonic robe. That must have meant that she was vanquished during a ritual of some sort.

The third and least powerful of the three was a warlock. This warlock was incredibly powerful, though his power was considered lesser because he was not a true demon. Even from a distance, Kavaran could tell that he must have killed some very powerful witches to gain some of the powers he had. This was the one, yes, and not a bad one either. A look of determination hardened on Kavaran's face as he watched the three explode, leaving only the aura of powers.

He thought it over as the powers fell through the air. If he went back with a warlock's powers, but his title as demon still intact, would he be considered a warlock or a demon? NO! These were the thoughts that led to hesitation, and hesitation had gotten him killed. He couldn't hesitate, he would not, and he could always steal demonic powers later, or even come back here to gain some more. He readied himself for the sprint, and watched as the beast reared its ugly head, having just appeared from underground.

Kavaran had broken into a run before the powers had even touched the ground, having predicted where they were going to fall. This was the run for his life, and also for his freedom. He would run full speed through the power, and not stop until after he had Blinked away.

There were five powers on the ground where the warlock's had fallen, swirling and manifesting themselves as unexplainable light auras. Five was a good collection to have for a warlock, even if one of those powers was a give in. He vaguely wondered what they were, though it was not important so long as one of them was Blinking. He could gain more later, either here or in the real world.

As predicted, the Beast went after Gar first. One by one, his powers were drained into the Beast's long, well-fed stomach. It then went straight for the female demon. Kavaran was almost there, fully committed. There was no way he was turning around now, not when he was so close. His lungs felt as though they were on fire, but he didn't care. He had long outgrown pain. It was all he had known since coming here, and it no longer bothered him.

The Beast was done with the female demon, but Kavaran was only about twenty feet away from what he needed. The Beast could not reach him in time. Kavaran smiled broadly as his foot made contact with the warlock's fallen powers.

One by one, the gifts entered his system. Kavaran instantly knew what they were when they settled within him. The power to slow down molecules to the point where they freeze and crystallize was first. Then Shapeshifting followed. The power to stretch his body was after that. Fourth, he was granted the power to strangle things. Finally, he was granted the power to Blink.

The Beast came directly at him, though it had to have known that it was a vain attempt. Vowing to return one day to kill the foul creature, Kavaran focused on the place he had wanted to be for a year, blinked his eyes, and was gone.

**A/N** I know it's short, but it's more of a prologue than anything else. I promise it will get better. Anyway, what did you guys think? All reviews are appreciated and welcomed.


	2. Chapter 2

Another dead end. San Francisco University was one of many colleges that had too many problems for Wyatt Halliwell, an eighteen-year-old who would be attending college soon. He had yet to find the right college, however. His grades throughout high school had been fantastic, which had prompted many schools up and down the west coast to contact him and invite him on a tour. None of them were the perfect college, though.

Wyatt was disappointed. He thought this college had been the one. It wasn't too far from his family, which was a must considering that his family was always managing to get themselves into supernatural predicaments. It had a great Criminal Justice program, which was very important considering the job he needed to go into. Cars were allowed, which was another necessity considering how often he would need to go see his family. Lastly, it met his standards. The only problem was that downtown San Francisco was still littered with demonic forces.

Wyatt's family was very special. His mother Piper was one of the Charmed Ones, along with her sisters Phoebe and Paige. He was the Twice-Blessed Child, the most powerful witch to ever walk on Earth. His brother, sister, and cousins had also inherited, or in Henry Junior's case obtained, magical powers. This led to almost weekly occurrences with supernatural forces, and also to frequent needs for Wyatt's help.

Wyatt started the Jeep's engine, and backed out of the parking space. It was then he saw the traffic jam, blocking the way home. He sighed, and banged his blonde head once off the steering wheel. It had been a long day, and the usual twenty-minute ride home would be a lot longer.

It was ninety degrees in San Francisco that day, and Wyatt could feel it. The Jeep's air conditioning wasn't the best; it would be about five minutes before the temperature was comfortable. Rolling down the windows didn't help either.

Wyatt remembered a long way around, one that would pass his Aunt Paige's house, but it would still take ten minutes of slow traffic before he could get there. Wyatt hated driving in slow traffic. It was harder, and he really didn't want to crash his mother's car. He would then be unable to drive for months. Chris wouldn't let him use his Toyota crossover, his dad's Honda was a stick shift, and his old Chevy SUV was still being fixed by his dad.

As he drove entered the San Francisco strip, he suddenly felt a disturbance, a ringing in his ears.

_WYATT!_ It was Tamora, and she was close. Wyatt could sense her, just down the road, in an alley that intersected with the main street. He put the gas pedal on the floor, and the car sped off to help the charge in need.

Wyatt's blonde hair blew in the wind; he had forgotten to put the windows up. He was used to driving like this, however. This wasn't the first time he had been Called while in a car. His defined features were locked in determination to save his little cousin as he put one hand on the wheel, and reached the other up to pull down the vanity mirror.

On the vanity mirror, there was a clip for sunglasses, but it was not used for sunglasses in the Halliwell family. Yellow notebook paper hung from it, each piece containing a rhyme or two designed to have a magical effect. Piper herself had written all of these spells, just in case Wyatt or Chris ever ran into an emergency on the road.

"_General Vanquishing Spell,"_ Wyatt called, holding out one hand. Magical blue Orbs converged first on the notebook paper, and then on his hand, leaving a single piece of yellow lined paper. This particular curse was designed to work on most lower-level demons or warlocks.

Wyatt pulled a sharp turn without braking, with foot on the emergency brake in case something went wrong. Luckily, he was able to pull off the turn with no problem. It took him a minute to register the scene in front of him.

Cryodemons had driven Tamora's back to the end of the alley. There were two of them, and while Tam was doing a great job of holding them off, she was clearly going to lose this on her own. Freezing bolts were being fired, and Tam's Molecular Acceleration was unable to hold back all of them. They were getting closer and closer every time, and if she was hit, Tam would die.

Wyatt got out of the car, chanting the words on the paper loudly, and directing magical energy towards the taller of the demons.

"_With the power I have in store,_

_For this demon, one thing is sure._

_With these words I open the Wasteland's door,_

_This evil is vanquished forevermore!"_

It wasn't the best spell his mother had ever written, but it did its job. The taller of the two exploded, and the other one quickly Shimmered out. Tam dropped her defensive stance and walked slowly towards Wyatt, her hands moving across the alleyway, waiting for the demon to reappear.

Tam was her mother in miniature, yet she had her father's no-nonsense nature. She had probably Scryed for evil, picked up the Cryodemons, and thought she could handle it without either of her siblings.

After getting over the initial relief, Wyatt felt anger boiling inside him. How could Tam be so stupid? She was fourteen; it was time to stop acting like a child! What if he couldn't have answered her call? She could have died!

"Thanks, Wyatt," she said, beaming broadly. Wyatt knew instantly she was trying to get out of trouble. That innocent smile gave too much away.

"What were you thinking?" Wyatt demanded. Tam's smile disappeared as quickly as the Cryodemon had. He hated when members of his family put themselves in danger by taking a stupid risk. "Why wouldn't you have brought Kat and Henry? What's wrong with you? Ever since Kavaran, you've been doing nothing but stupid crap, Tam! You could have been killed!"

She hung her head, her brown hair concealing her face. "I know."

"Then why would you come here, Tam?"

There was no answer. She just turned away from him, and in doing so, revealed a folded white piece of paper sticking out of her back pocket.

"What's that, Tam?" Wyatt asked, though he thought he'd rather not know. She handed it to him. Wyatt unfolded it and read the first line.

_To Summon a Cryodemon_.

Wyatt couldn't believe it. "WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU? GET RID OF IT! NOW!"

Tam flicked her hands, just like her Aunt Piper did when activating her powers. The spell caught fire, and was unrecognizable instantly.

"Answer me! Why are you Summoning demons in back alleys?"

"Do you really want to know?" Tam countered, wheeling around to face him again. "I'm trying to figure out if Kavaran's promise of revenge could be more than an empty threat! There you go, yell at me!"

Tempting, but Wyatt was starting to cool off. As a Whitelighter, one of the key things he was responsible to do was let cooler heads prevail. He thought for a moment before speaking; the last thing he needed was for Tam to get mad at him.

"Thanks for the permission, but no. I'd rather talk. Tam, we vanquished him. You were there. You saw him blow into a million pieces. Do you really think that he'd come back for more, even if he can return from the Wasteland?"

"It's not just me, Parker thinks so too, you know. PJ, Kat, Melinda, and I are all working on researching the Demonic Wasteland and ways a demon might get back. Henry asked the Avatars, but they can't help. Chris went to the Elders and Parker and Pamela went to the Angels of Destiny. Nobody is answering, at least not directly! Don't you know what that means? It's possible for him to come back!"

This caught Wyatt off guard. Parker had the power of Premonition, and her hunches generally turned out to be something more. Her word added more credibility to Tam's stupidity than one might have thought. "Okay, so maybe it is, but he's not going to! You saw what we did last time, Tam!"

There was a long silence. Wyatt was seething. He had worked his entire life to protect these eight people, and they were doing nothing to make his job easier! The idea of Kavaran returning was…. impossible, ridiculous actually.

"So what happens now?" Tam asked.

"I'm driving you home. You're going to stay there. No more reckless hunts!"

"That's not what I meant."

Wyatt took a deep breath, preparing himself for the inevitable. "Tam, I know what you meant, and I'm really sorry, but I have to tell your mom, Aunt Phoebe, and my mom what's going on. Maybe, if you explain how worried you are to them, they'll help you."

"You know that's not what they'll do; they'll ground all of us!" Tam was clearly disgusted with Wyatt now, and all pretenses at innocence were gone.

"And hopefully you learn a lesson about stupid risks! Get in the car!"

Tam gazed fiercely into his eyes, and for a second, Wyatt expected defiance. However, she dropped her gaze and calmly walked to the green Jeep, her eyes on her feet the whole time.

Wyatt was left alone in the alleyway, contemplating what he was to do with his cousins. As their designated Whitelighter, there had to be something! If there was time, he would meditate, but that wasn't a current option. He would have to think it through, and quickly. He couldn't display doubt in front of Tam. There had to be something in the Book of Shadows….

Then the idea came to him in a stroke of sheer brilliance, and a large grin spread across his face.

Kat Mitchell stood in the basement of her home, waiting for the moment when Wyatt would arrive with Tam and ensure the demise of their quest to stop Kavaran from returning. Tam had sent a text ahead, warning her and the rest of the cousins that Wyatt knew everything and was going to tell her mother and aunts.

She had decided to pass the time by working out, or rather exercising her powers. Paige Matthews-Mitchell had allowed Kat to convert the basement into a magical gym. She used it often, as it was the only way she could see her power becoming as useful as Tam's.

While her twin sister Tam specialized in speeding molecules up, Kat specialized in slowing them down. Tam could speed up molecules to the point where they caught fire, or even blew up. Kat could only slow them down or stop them completely. Her mother assured her that her freezing power was more powerful than Tam's because it was one of the powers included in the Prophecy of the Charmed Ones, but Kat wasn't buying it.

Today, Kat was practicing something she had been working on for a while: the ability to channel her slowing power through her eyes. Progress had been slow, however. She had gotten no results, and was beginning to think that her abilities were doomed to be nothing compared to Tam's.

For this lesson, her target was a red punching bag. She was centering herself, something she did every time before she exercised her power. It was the Whitelighter in her, or at least that was what her mother had told her.

Then again, it was her mother's fault that her power's hadn't become anything more than her other cousins. She had Bound her powers when she was a baby, until she had become old enough to control them. She and Tam were the only ones of the Nine who had gotten their powers Bound, and gotten them un-Bound at eight years of age, much too late for her to reach her full potential. That was why Kat had to do this, she was sure of it. Her mother had messed with her natural abilities, and Kat was suffering the consequences!

The bitterness over this was disturbing for Kat. She took a deep breath, and let the ill feelings wash away. It passed into the farthest corner of the mind, suppressed but not completely released. Kat inhaled again, and rammed the punching bag full-force with her shoulder.

It swung quickly back and forth, in a pendulum motion. Kat squinted her eyes and aimed the magical energy towards the punching bag. Something was happening! This was the first time ever! She could feel her power in use! Something was wrong, though. The punching bag wasn't slowing down! Why wasn't it slowing down? She could feel her power working through her.

"Kat!" Henry Mitchell, her father called down the stairs. "I'm doing the dishes. Could you please practice on something other than the water pipes?"

_Water pipes?_ She was practicing on a punching bag. Instinctually, she looked towards the pipes, and understood immediately.

They were right behind her, right where her hands were pointed. Kat sighed in disappointment. That had been where her hands had been pointing. She had channeled her power through her hands while trying to channel it through her eyes!

"Seriously?" she asked, looking up towards the Heavens. "I could really use a little boost for this. I promise it's important."

As usual, there was no reply. Though she was part Whitelighter, the Elders tended to pay her and Tamora no mind. She suspected it was because they didn't have enough Whitelighter blood to communicate with them. This only led to further thoughts of weakness in Kat's mind.

"Kat, please return the water to its normal speed," Henry shouted. She did so with a flick of her hands.

"It's back to normal," she called back. Optimistic thoughts were beginning to form in her mind. At least _something_ had happened! She would have to ask Paige what it meant later. For now, she had another emergency to deal with. Through a basement window, she saw that a green Jeep had pulled up to the house.

"Wyatt!" she muttered to herself, a feeling of dread flooding into her heart. Paige would be very angry when he told her where Tam had been! All Kat could do now was brace herself for the worst. She ran upstairs, and pressed her ear to the basement door. She would be able to hear what Wyatt was saying from that position.

The doorbell rang, and Kat heard her mother open the door a few seconds later.

"Wyatt! Thanks for giving Tam a ride," Paige said cheerfully.

"No problem, Aunt Paige," Wyatt replied.

"Do you wanna come in?"

"No, I've got to get going, but I need to talk to you, mom, and Aunt Phoebe soon. Is nine tonight good?"

"Yeah, sure. Where at?"

"The manor, I guess."

"Okay. See you there."

The door shut. Kat had to talk to Tam and PJ, and she had to do it now. It was luck, sheer luck, that Wyatt had chosen not to reveal what they were doing that minute. The clock on the wall said it read 2:46. They had a little over six hours to do all they could to find out about Kavaran.

"Tam," Kat called, opening the door and walking into the foyer. "We need to talk."

"Sure," she replied in a perfectly normal tone. Tam had the greatest poker face, something that Kat had never mastered.

They walked back down to the basement. It was where they held all of their discussions. Paige and Henry never went down there.

"We have until nine to wrap this up," Kat said. "I'm calling PJ now."

Kat whipped out her cell phone, punching in PJ's phone number. She pressed the speaker button and set it on the table while it dialed. PJ answered almost immediately.

"Did he tell her?" That was the typical way the Nine answered phone calls from each other. It was never a simple "hello."

"No, but he's calling a family meeting at nine at the manor. Can we meet at your place?"

"My mom's in right now. Twin Peaks, twenty minutes?"

"Sounds good. Henry will take us there. You call Chris, but tell him to bring his car."

"See you there." PJ hung up the phone.

"You get Henry. I'll get the potions and spells. Back here in five minutes," Kat said, addressing her older twin.

"Agreed," Tam said, already running up the stairs.

Kat decided to give it one last try before she left. She hurled a book into the air and squinted as it fell. It hit the ground at a normal speed.

"Oh well," Kat sighed, hiding her frustration quite well. She walked up the stairs as well, intent on making sure Kavaran could never return.

Prudence Johanna Halliwell glanced at her cell phone again. They were late. She was sure that Chris and Melinda had been caught up in traffic, and that Kat, Henry, and Tamora had managed to get themselves into another stupid situation. She was irritated. If Wyatt was to reveal their plan to the sisters at nine tonight, then every minute counted, even the three they had already lost because of the others being late.

PJ was on a bench in the shade, watching her sister Pamela play around in the grass. She hoped she enjoyed the playtime now, because there certainly wouldn't be any once the Charmed Ones knew about the scheme. Pam was the only one of the Nine who didn't know about the family meeting, and PJ didn't want to worry her until it was absolutely necessary.

The sisters had been honest with their mother to get out of the house, but not completely honest. They had merely told her that they were meeting some of their cousins at Twin Peaks to discuss a potential demonic threat. She didn't know that the afternoon was going to be completely dedicated to major demon hunting.

Her middle sister Parker was pacing around the general area, slyly touching various objects. This was a part of the Nexus; if Parker could willingly call a Premonition anywhere, it was in this place of great psychic power. PJ, who was anxious about the others being late, had told Parker to try to summon one in advance. So far, there had been no luck.

"Anything?" PJ called to Parker, already knowing the answer but wanting to be sure.

"Nothing, but this feels….. different then the other times…" Parker said.

"Different? How?"

"It almost feels like my power is being Blocked," Parker responded.

"Blocked? How can you tell?"

"Well, on that boulder over there, I had the wind knocked out of me as usual, and felt like I was soaring away, but then it felt like I hit a brick wall and returned to the present before I saw anything." That was unnerving. It would take a very powerful spell indeed to block Parker's power.

"Well, focus on that boulder then. It might be that you can defeat the Block."

"How?" Parker asked angrily, putting her hands on her hips.

"If your witch abilities can't do it, then use your Cupid ones," PJ shot back.

"Right. Beaming and Allied Invisibility. How can those help?" Parker asked. She had never been fond of the Cupid in her. It had lost credibility when it had given her Allied Invisibility, the ability to become invisible to enemies only, instead of something as powerful as PJ's Pathokinesis or Love Calling.

"As a Cupid, you can overcome any barrier with love alone," PJ snapped back, quoting their father.

"None of us ever mastered that ability," Parker reminded her.

"Well, then you could use the practice. Go."

Parker flipped her long, dark hair and stormed over to the boulder, placing her hand on it. PJ watched closely. She appeared to be having a Premonition, but something did seem different. PJ used her Pathokinesis power to share her will with Parker, though in touching her mind, she felt a very powerful force blocking the Premonition. She doubted even the power of the whole Nine could defeat it, let alone when they were without Wyatt.

"Forget it, Parker," she called. Her sister returned from her Blocked vision. "Just Astral Project into Chris's car and find out where they are."

"I don't think that will be necessary," Parker responded, pointing over PJ's left shoulder. PJ turned around, and saw Chris, Melinda, Tamora, Kat, and Henry walking toward them.

"You're late," PJ called.

"Five minutes," Melinda shot back.

"Every minute counts! We have less than six hours," PJ responded.

"Do you have a plan?" Chris asked Kat when they caught up to them. Pamela and Parker also rushed towards the group.

"Less than six hours?" Pam asked, before Kat could even open her mouth.

"Wyatt found out," Parker explained.

"Oh, no!"

"That's why we have to work extra hard. Pam, you don't have to do this. You can Beam home if you want to," Kat offered.

"No, I want to help," Pam responded, eagerness overcoming the fear on her face rather quickly.

"Okay, then. It's up to you," Chris said. "Kat, do you have a plan?"

"Yes. Chris, you would take Tam, Parker, and Henry to somewhere out there, where nobody would hear you, and Summon a demon. You would use your powers to torture him until he agrees to let Parker get a Premonition from him, at which point you would investigate any leads you came up with. Melinda would Orb Pam, PJ, and I down to the Underworld, where we would go undercover as demons and try to obtain the knowledge from a Demonic Mentor."

"No," PJ said reflexively. "Pam's not going to the Underworld."

"We need her ability. It's the only power between the three of us that is could be considered neutral. And your main function is as her protector," Kat said. PJ stood down, recognizing it was their only chance.

"If anything happens, I'll levitate him and you finish him, Prue," Pam said, using PJ's other nickname.

"I know, sweetie," PJ said, putting her hands on Pam's shoulders in a motherly gesture. She had always been protective of both of her sisters, especially Pam due to her age.

"One problem with the Underworld mission," Melinda said, raising her hand. All of the cousins turned to face her. "I can't Glamour. How will we change our appearance?"

"With these," Kat said, pulling out four potions from her pocket. "They will turn us into demons, but there's a catch. If any demon ever finds out our true identities, the potion's effects automatically wear off. Otherwise, we can reverse it with a spell." Kat handed each of the Underworld-goers one of the vials.

"I have another question," Henry stated. "How will we torture the demon if he Shimmers away?"

"Chris can stop Shimmers now, right?" Kat asked. PJ had seen him do it only once before, during an interrogation. The demon had tried to Shimmer away, but Chris had panicked, put his hands up, and the Shimmer had been stopped.

"I've only done it a few times," Chris responded slowly. "And even if I manage to stop the Shimmer, what about his other active powers?"

"A crystal cage, maybe," Kat suggested. "I didn't grab ours, so you'll have to stop at the manor to get one."

"No problem," Parker said. "I'll just Beam in and grab it."

"Henry, you'll have to wage a mind-battle with the demon," Tam said. "Are you up for it?"

"Yeah. I can make him see terrible things, conjure painful torture-toys, that sort of thing. That's probably where I'll be the most useful. Plus, if he does manage to Shimmer away, I can follow the Shimmer."

"What if Wyatt busts us?" Parker asked.

"We hope that doesn't happen. None of us are powerful enough to go against him," Kat replied.

"I guess that's it. Everyone ready to go?" Chris asked.

There were murmurs of assent, some responding slower than others.

"Great. My group, to the car," Chris said, turning and leading the way. Parker hesitated, bending down to Pam.

"Are you _sure,_ Pam? This is really risky, and nobody would make you do this if you don't want to."

"Parker, we don't have another choice!"

"Yes, we do," PJ said fiercely.

"Don't worry. I have powers too, you know. I'm not totally helpless. Plus this will be good practice."

PJ thought for a second, contemplating if she should give Pam a weapon. She was only eight, after all. But PJ had used weapons responsibly at that age. Plus, if it would make Pam safer, the benefits far outweighed the cost.

"_Athamae!"_ PJ said, holding out her hand. One appeared in her hand seconds later. "Take this, and only use it in absolute emergencies."

"PJ, I'll be fine!"

"I know, but you're not going without the knife. All powers have flaws, and if you don't work to cover up those flaws, you're as good as dead," PJ responded fiercely. Pam took it.

"Parker!" Tam called from the car. The others had already reached it.

"Take care of her," Parker said to PJ.

"I will." Parker ran to join the others, jumping into the backseat with Henry before it zoomed off.

"Should we take the potions now?" Melinda asked once the car had disappeared.

"This might be our only chance," Kat agreed, tipping hers into her mouth. The others followed suit.

The effect was instant. All four of them now appeared to be tall, adult males. Pam had markings on her face. PJ's hair was long, dressed in a ponytail. Kat was the tallest of them all, sporting a large beard. Melinda was bald.

"Enough, we don't have time!" Kat said, exasperated at the giggles that ensued as the others looked around at each other. Her voice had changed to sound more demonic as well. "Melinda, now."

Melinda took Pam and Kat's hand, and PJ put a hand on her shoulder. A swirl of Orbs overtook them, and they were whisked away from Twin Peaks.

**A/N:** Hey, guys! Thanks for reading. What did you think about the characters? Don't forget to review, I appreciate all opinions.

This chapter was more introductory than anything else, meant to show some of the group's powers and personality. The rest will get attention in the next few chapters. I personally was disappointed that I didn't get a lot out of Chris, Melinda, or Henry, so count on seeing them soon.

I don't know for sure when I'll get the next chapter finished, but I'm aiming for about a week, though. Two weeks tops. See you then.


End file.
